Good stories deserve
great design thinking.
Notes on covers, typography and the decisions that help a story find its visual voice.
Why most book covers fail to capture attention
A cover can contain beautiful imagery and still leave a reader unsure what the book offers. The useful question is not whether it is eye-catching in isolation, but what it communicates in context.
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11 articles
KDP vs IngramSpark: what changes in the cover file?
The visual identity can remain the same across editions, but the production file should follow the template for the specific platform, binding and book specification.
Read the story ↗Why most book covers fail to capture attention
A cover can contain beautiful imagery and still leave a reader unsure what the book offers. The useful question is not whether it is eye-catching in isolation, but what it communicates in context.
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What makes a book cover feel professional?
Professional book cover design is often recognised through small, consistent decisions. Image, lettering and space feel as though they belong to the same book.
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How to choose the right cover style for your genre
Photography, illustration and typography can each carry a book beautifully. The right choice depends on the reading experience, the audience and what the title needs to communicate.
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A beautiful cover, with a clear purpose
Beauty and strategy do not need to compete. A considered cover gives its visual choices a purpose: introducing a particular book to a particular reader.
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Self-publishing design mistakes worth catching early
Many avoidable problems begin before the final export: a changing page count, unclear image permissions or a cover approved without seeing it at its actual viewing size.
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Author branding beyond the book cover
An author identity connects the places a reader meets your work. It gives a website, a new release and an event announcement a recognisable relationship without making every book look identical.
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Designing for thumbnail readability
A cover does not need every word to be equally prominent at every size. It needs a clear order: a title, a visual idea and enough character to remain recognisable when the image gets small.
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How typography changes the perception of a book
Lettering establishes a tone before a reader finishes the title. A narrow sans serif, a restrained serif and expressive hand lettering each create a different expectation.
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Designing a cohesive book series
A series needs recognition and variation. Readers should see the relationship between volumes while still being able to distinguish one book from another.
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How I approach a book cover brief
The most useful brief gives me a clear understanding of the book while leaving room to discover its visual expression. It begins with the story, not a list of effects.
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